Letter to the editor: It's time for South Lake Tahoe to ban plastic bags

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Plastic bags are a menace to wildlife and should be banned across California. Plastic bags entangle birds, fish, and many other animals, trapping or suffocating them. At best, plastic bags brittle in the sun before breaking apart into smaller pieces that fit into smaller mouths. Many animals mistake floating plastic particles for food and starve to death after the indigestible plastic blocks their digestive tract. The bags never biodegrade: once they blow into our forests or wash into Lake Tahoe, they'll stay there for decades or even hundreds of years.

Nearly 60 cities and counties across California have already voted to ban plastic bags, including San Jose, Ukiah, and Mendocino County. Others, like Chico and the City of Los Angeles, are working to finalize ordinances before a final vote. South Lake Tahoe could be next.

Let's do the right thing for the environment. Each plastic bag ban takes lethal garbage out of the environment, saving the lives of birds and fish. Lake Tahoe is a precious resource for this community, and it deserves to be protected from garbage like throwaway plastic bags. It's time for the City Council to ban single-use plastic bags.